Down 3-1 in the Western Conference Finals, the Timberwolves were a game away from elimination and the end of the best season in franchise history. Our hopes for a championship were dangling by a thread as the odds continued to mount against us. So I wrote this piece as an encouragement for my fellow fans and the players to keep believing. Of course the Wolves ultimately fell and our title dreams came to an end. But the one thing that didn’t was our hope that one day we’d get to see Kevin Garnett hoist that trophy into the air.
“Redemption” is my favorite Timberwolves article of all time. And I think that it’s very fitting that this article saturated with hope is the Christmas Day post. Cause after all, that’s what this holiday is all about. I hope you enjoy it.
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Hope Never Dies. [image2]
If I didn’t care, more than words can say,
If I didn’t care, would I feel this way?
Those are the first words in the film, The Shawshank Redemption. Those are also very fitting words for any Minnesota Timberwolves fan feeling the pressure of a 3-1 series deficit to the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite this line’s relevance, the Shawshank Redemption offers more to us than just this depressing inquiry. While watching the movie, I couldn’t help but notice the many similarities between inmate, Andy Dufrense and league MVP, Kevin Garnett. Both have been unjustly punished for the sins of other men. Yet both possess the indomitable will to survive amidst their seemingly impossible situations. If Kevin, too, will escape the walls of his prison, is a question that is still unanswered.
We are experiencing what is unquestionably the most uncertain hour in this Timberwolves’ season. The odds are stacked so strongly against us. Many, including our own fans, have written us off. And so I, in one perhaps final attempt to revive a doubting T-Wolves nation, have turned to a film about overcoming the impossible for inspiration. In the next few paragraphs, I’ve altered quotes from the movie to fit them to this Timberwolves season. TNT, the station that hold the rights to the Western Conference Playoffs, prides itself on producing drama. Perhaps in the next few days, it will broadcast a tale similar to the one that follows. This, is our Redemption.